Both Mother and daughter Bess Price and Jacinta Nampijinpa Price are making allegations to Aboriginal People who are upset with the Australia Day rhetoric that they are “Claiming” to be Aboriginal as an accusation that they are not.

comments on Jacinta has a price page and comments from people like
Lisa coon -former principal at Dondale who got grilled in the Royal commission for making comments on face book pages
Shane stringer – former Dondale worker
Trevor dean-well I’m pretty sure he’s a current police officer in Alice springs

Can Alice Mob pull the mother and daughter up before they cause too much damage for our people?

Both Mother and daughter Bess Price and Jacinta Nampijinpa Price are making allegations about Aboriginal People who are upset with the Australia Day rhetoric that they are “Claiming” to be Aboriginal as an accusation that they are not.

It is against law to speak for another man, his land or lived experience. This has to stop, its not our way to hate our mob and legacy. We are 1 Mob and need to keep it that way. Dont let them divide us, just keep teaching the truth about our history and who we are. The truth shall set us free.

And maybe a petition could be drafted for these people to put a stop to them getting so much airtime to spew this stuff into the media where it does most damage. Fueling a very hostile situation already between, black and white. This is undoing the hard work done my many generations

“Adverse Childhood Experiences are the single the greatest unaddressed health threat facing our nation today”. Robert Block, Former President of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

In the mid 90’s the CDC and Kaiser Permanente discovered an exposure that dramatically increased the risk for 7 out of 10 of the leading cause of death in the USA.

In high doses it affects brain development, the immune system, hormonal systems and even the way our DNA is read and transcribed. People who are exposed in very high doses have triple the risk of heart disease and lung cancer and a 20 year difference in life expectancy.

The exposure is not a pesticide or packaging chemical, but childhood trauma.

Not failing a test or losing a basketball game. Threats that are so severe or invasive that they get under our skin and change our Physiology. Things like child abuse, a parent who struggles with mental issues or substance abuse.

We are trained to view childhood issues either as a welfare problem or a mental health problem.

Kids are being treated for ADD or ADHD, after making a thorough diagnosis it was clear something else was going on.

The adverse childhood experience study, 17 500 adults were asked about their exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACES). Those include:

physical and emotional or sexual abuse

physical or emotional neglect

parental mental illness, substance dependence, incarceration

parental separation, divorce or domestic violence

For every yes, people interviewed would get a point.

The research correlated the ACES scores with health outcomes. What they found was Striking!

There’s two things:

ACES are extremely common – 67% of the population had at least one ACE and 12.6% (1 in 8) have four or more ACES.

They also found there was a dose response relationship between ACES and health outcomes. The higher your ACES score, the worse your health outcomes.

Someone with a score of four or more was two and a half times more likely to develop heart issues then someone with a score of zero. For Hepatitis it was also 2.5 times and for depression it was four and a half times. Suicide, 12 times. For someone with a score of 7 or more had triple the risk of lung cancer and 3 and half times the risk of heart disease, the number one killer.

People will say well of course if you have a rough childhood of course your going to drink and smoke and damage your health. But science has now helped us to understand the how the exposure of adversity affects the minds and bodies of children. It affects the nucleus accumbens – the pleasure centre of the brain that is implicated with substance abuse. It inhibits the pre frontal cortex which is necessary for impulse control and executive function. A critical function for learning. On MRI scans we see measurable differences in the Amygdala the brains fear and response center.

So there are real neurologic reasons why people exposed to high doses of adversity are more likely to engage in high risk behaviour. Even if you don’t engage in high risk behaviour your still more likely to develop heart disease or cancer. The reason for this has to do with the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, the brain and bodies stress response system that governs the bodies fight or flight response.

If you’re getting attacked by a bear in the forest these natural responses are great. but the problem is when the bear comes home every night and this system is activated over and over and is no longer life saving or adaptive but maladaptive and health damaging. Children are especially sensitive to this repeated stress activation because their brains and bodies are still developing. High doses of adversity not only affect brain function and development, they affect the developing immune system, developing hormonal systems and even changes the way our DNA is read and transcribed.

Doctors are obligated to use this science to prevent and treat. Prevent Heal Screen.

Youth Wellness Centre’s like the one in California need to include:

A multi disciplinary team

Treat symptoms using best practices including home visits, care coordination, mental health care, nutrition, holistic interventions and medications where necessary.

Educate parents about the effects of ACES and toxic stress

Tailored approach with the understanding they may need more intensive treatment given the changes to their hormonal and immune systems.

This is a global issue

Robert Block, Former President of the American Academy of Pediatrics states that Adverse Childhood Experiences are the single the greatest unaddressed health threat facing our nation today”.

The scope and scale of the problem seems so large we don’t know how to approach it. But if we look at this for what it is, “A Public Health Crisis”, we can use the right tool kit to come up with the right solutions. From Tobacco to lead poisoning to HIV AIDS, we have a strong track record for addressing public health problems. But to do the same with ACEs and toxic stress is going to take dedication and commitment.

Why havent we taken this more seriously?

Is it because it doesn’t apply to us? The data says the opposite. The original ACEs study was done in a population where 70% were caucasian, 70% college educated. Maybe we marginalise the issue because it does apply to us. Maybe we would rather concentrate on other communities and be sick then deal with it.

Science advantage and economic realities make this option less viable now, the science is clear…. Early adversity affects the health dramatically across the lifetime. Today we are learning how to interrupt the progression from early adversity to disease and early death and 30 yrs from now a child with a high ACE score and whose behavioural symptoms go unrecognised, whose asthma management is not connected, who goes on to develop high blood pressure and early heart disease or cancer, will just be as anomalis as a 6 month mortality with HIV AIDS.

This is treatable, this is beatable. The one thing we all need is the courage look this problem in the face and to say this is real. We are the movement!

Do you need to do a parasite cleanse? Probably… I hear from so many people suffering from symptoms of parasites – severe bloating, cramps, constipation, diarrhoea.

A big problem in getting to the bottom of this (pun intended) is that the mainstream medical system really doesn’t have a way to detect, or even find most forms of parasites. They give you drugs for the symptoms, but essentially the parasites aren’t removed during that process.

Natural Parasite Cleanse – Herbs And … Earth?!

Herbal remedies are a great tool to start with right away. Cloves, wormwood and black walnut are what you want to look for.

A clove head looks just like the end of the parasites head, and I think nature really designed it that way to get us to use it to eliminate parasites. Cloves work because they kill the eggs not just the adults. Along with cloves, the herbs wormwood and black walnut husk are great as they will kill the parasites in general.

Try taking these herbs as a tea on a daily basis as part of your parasite cleanse. You can add some honey to taste if you like. Honey is a anti-parasitic by the way, as are pumpkin and papaya seeds.

There’s another thing called diatomaceous earth. What the?! That’s right diatomaceous earth! It has a fragmented structure that gets rid of parasites by literally cutting them into pieces and then they’ll come out in your poop!

Fasting For Parasites – Starve Them Out!

Now if you have tried herbs without success that’s where the fasting and cleansing comes in.

Colon cleansing is THE place to start when doing a parasite cleanse because it’s build up of plaque in the colon that the parasites feed on and one of the big reasons the parasites are there in the first place. I have a 4 Day Colon Cleanse you can buy online specifically designed to clean out the plaque from your body.

Plaque can be the result of a crap diet, or just a slow build up that’s formed over time and distance. Often plaque is also partly a physical manifestation of a past experience, or pattern that we are holding onto. You may need to do some emotional or energetic work to help release that.

After a colon cleanse I recommend you begin juice fasting for 10-14 days. By this point you should start to see the parasites being ejected out. Yes! It’s important you do look at them, you know, in the toilet with your little flashlight and mask and magnifying glass! But seriously you do need to be able to see if they’re coming out. If they are great. If they don’t come out after 10-14 days on juice fasting then you might need to do a water fast to really starve them out.

I would also recommend checking your pH and making sure that you’re more alkaline and if you’re not maybe adding a little bit of salt with a little bit of bicarbonate soda. Pour a teaspoon in your water and drink that a couple times a day until your pH comes up to above 7.

Breathing exercises are a great way to alkalise the body also. I have an audio called “Seven Rounds Of Seven” you can download free as part of my free 7 day online juice fast… Do the ‘Seven Rounds Of Seven’, three times a day and you will feel balanced, gain clarity of mind and probably be ready to release whatever it is you’ve been holding onto.

Blast Them Out!

Ok, here is a last case scenario for just blasting those parasites out the back! I’ve never shared this before publicly but I’m sharing it now. If you think you have any form of parasites and you’re serious about wanting to get rid of them then try this.

It’s a thousand year old parasite cleanse formula using fresh raw goats milk and honey. Use an enema bag to put just a little bit of the goats milk and honey into your colon, not much, just a little bit that you can hold it in and sit there. Then do a salt flush (1 tablespoon of himalayan or celtic sea salt in a litre of water then drink 1/3 of it). Next do some Shankhaprakshalana exercises (look them up!) to encourage the salt solution to move through your body. Repeat as necessary.

What’s going to happen is all these parasites are so hungry they gather to eat the milk and the honey which you’ve used to entice them super close to your butthole. Then in perfect synchronicity the Shankhaprashalan exercises will bring the salt water rushing down into the colon, and… KABOOM!!! The parasites that gathered to your colon are flushed out into the toilet – you can get rid of a LOT of parasites this way!

Colon Cleansing To Keep Clean!

After using any of the parasite cleanse protocols I’ve discussed, the biggest thing is changing and modifying your internal terrain. This is super important, because when your insides are healthy you don’t have the plaque which the parasites love to live on.

Some regular fasting and colon cleansing is the way to go here. You’ll eliminate the parasites and in the process you’re gonna get healthy, you’re gonna have energy, you’re gonna have mental clarity, and you’re gonna feel freakin’ fan-tastic!

The geographically dispersed First Nation communities throughout Australia must become commercially, economically and culturally viable to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals. The absence of commercial opportunity has been dissolved by mainstreaming First Nation people that are unique and diverse. Emirates professor Jon Altman

Altman believes there are exceptional opportunities for First Nation people to create their own hybrid economies within their region and support their traditional cultures. Enterprises that can be explored can include art, craft and other artefact trade, hunting and fishing and land and wildlife management and customary land exploration, expeditions and wildlife and adventure treks.

First Nation people can develop and assist in land and water management practices, improving food security through the protection and management of traditional foods. First Nation people are living on some of the most bio-diverse land in Australia and First Nation people themselves have the potential to create unique opportunities towards greater self-determination.

How does culture help address societies’ challenges and add value to development interventions? The UNESCO Indicator Suite focuses on three key axes: i. Culture as a sector of economic activity; ii. Culture as a set of resources that adds value to development interventions and increases their impact; and iii. Culture as a sustainable framework for social cohesion and peace, essential to human development. Culture is understood as playing both an instrumental and constitutive role in development

Is Australia Hiding Aboriginal Achievement, was this hiding so they didn’t have to justify was taken from the first people? Are Australians really of the view that our First People were incompetent, that the First People were’nt using the land, so there for it didn’t matter to the First People that it was taken away?

We Need to Be Humbled Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee

Comparing Indigenous Knowledge & Western Science

Indigenous knowledge and Western science represent two different ways of looking at the world around us. Western science tries to understand the natural world by studying individual parts. In contrast, Indigenous knowledge seeks to understand the world in a more holistic way by observing the connections between all of the parts. Because of these differences, Indigenous knowledge has the potential to compliment the system of Western science (The Living Knowledge Project, 2008).

It was from Australia art, music, religion, democracy, astronomy, navigation, gender equality and all the nobler pursuits that enlighten, was exported so long ago.

How does culture help address societies’ challenges and add value to development interventions? The UNESCO Indicator Suite focuses on three key axes: i. Culture as a sector of economic activity; ii. Culture as a set of resources that adds value to development interventions and increases their impact; and iii. Culture as a sustainable framework for social cohesion and peace, essential to human development. Culture is understood as playing both an instrumental and constitutive role in development.

Dr Ngiare Brown is a Yuin nation woman from the south coast of NSW. She is a senior Aboriginal medical practitioner with qualifications in medicine, public health and primary care, and has studied bioethics, medical law and human rights. She was the first identified Aboriginal medical graduate from NSW, and is one of the first Aboriginal doctors in Australia. Over the past two decades she has developed extensive national and international networks in Indigenous health and social justice, including engagement with the UN system.

Ngiare is a founding member and was Foundation CEO of the Australian Indigenous Doctors’ Association (AIDA); is a founding member of the Pacific Region Indigenous Doctors’ Congress (PRIDoC); and is Chair of the Health, Rights and Sovereignty committee of PRIDoC. Along with colleagues from Aotearoa, Hawaii, Canada and mainland US, she is also part of an emerging international network addressing cultural governance protocols, and the ethical and legal impacts of genomic research and Indigenous peoples (the International Indigenous Genomics Alliance). Ngiare is convening a governance council for a newly established biorepository for Indigenous genomic research. She is also undertaking doctoral research in law, addressing Aboriginal child protection systems and practice.

Dr Ngaire Brown proposes that a cultural determinants approach to wellbeing is a relevant and effective way to improve outcomes across the social determinants of health That any development endeavours (education, employment, economic independence) that fail to acknowledge and promote cultural perspectives is akin to assimilation and risk further negative impacts. A ‘social and cultural determinants’ approach recognises that there are many drivers of illhealth that lie outside the direct responsibility of the health sector and which therefore require a collaborative, inter-sectoral approach; There is an increasing body of evidence demonstrating that protection and promotion of traditional knowledge, family, culture and kinship contribute to community cohesion and personal resilience; Current studies show that strong cultural links and practices improve outcomes across the SDH. Dr Brown often talks about our Historical legacy of contemporary and intergenerational impacts of historical policy, legislation, unresolved trauma, loss, grief, segregation, protection and assimilation policies. A ‘social and cultural determinants’ approach recognises that there are many drivers of ill-health that lie outside the direct responsibility of the health sector and which therefore require a collaborative, intersectoral approach; There is an increasing body of evidence demonstrating that protection and promotion of traditional knowledge, family, culture and kinship contribute to community cohesion and personal resilience; Current studies show that strong cultural links and practices improve outcomes across the SDH. Indigenous perspective enriches practice for all.

Culture constitutes a fundamental dimension of the development process and helps to strengthen the independence, sovereignty and identity of nations. Growth has frequently been conceived in quantitative terms, without taking into account its necessary qualitative dimension, namely the satisfaction of man’s spiritual and cultural aspirations. The aim of genuine development is the continuing well-being and fulfilment of each and every individual…. Balanced development can only be ensured by making cultural factors an integral part of the strategies designed to achieve it; consequently, these strategies should always be devised in the light of the historical, social and cultural context of each society.

How does culture help address societies’ challenges and add value to development interventions? The UNESCO Indicator Suite focuses on three key axes: i. Culture as a sector of economic activity; ii. Culture as a set of resources that adds value to development interventions and increases their impact; and iii. Culture as a sustainable framework for social cohesion and peace, essential to human development. Culture is understood as playing both an instrumental and constitutive role in development. https://www.lowitja.org.au/sites/default/files/docs/Ngaire-Brown.pdf

Traditional foods have had a significant and beneficial role in the diets and way of life of Aboriginal people for thousands of years. Before European settlement in Australia the diets of Aboriginal people safeguarded them against diabetes and obesity. The benefits of traditional foods and their procurement are well established and compelling. The indirect benefits of traditional foods on the wider social determinants of health are as equally important. Traditional foods and associated resources can be the foundations of improved education, employment and commercial opportunities. These foods must be protected from contaminants from mining or other practices that are increasingly widespread among regions where Aboriginal communities exist. Promoting and protection of traditional foods will improve food security and this will ultimately be dependent on the continued access and preference for these foods by Aboriginal people.

McCalman et al (2004), using the first longitudinal, cradle to grave datasets created in Australia, constructed a comparative analysis, between all-age survival of birth cohorts of First Nations and impoverished whites born between 1851 and 1900. This extensive study illustrates the health burden that First Nation people endured from early European colonisation. McCalman et al (2004) describe First Nation people suffering from systematic legislative racism, social exclusion, a decline in social cohesion, social capital, material security and loss of traditional hunting grounds.

Data exists for only 65% of First Nations and included only impoverished whites. McCalman et al (2004) does not illustrate the burden that First Nation people endured as most First Nation people were ‘statistically invisible’ for almost a century. A comparative analysis with other whites, other than those who were impoverished should have been completed. The representation of First Nation and Non-First Nation people in Australia’s most extensive study of this time is incomplete.

By the mid-nineteenth century smallpox had decimated the First Nation population and the last remaining people lost traditional hunting grounds and rights to water to the new settlers and their stock. In 1886 the Half-castes Act forced all First Nation people of mixed-ancestry to leave their traditional lands. Smith and Smith (1999) reviewing Commonwealth Department of Health documents from 1951, state First Nations were forced to adapt to extreme social change between 1890-1970

Lipski (2010) explores the first observations of researchers, scientists and physicians working in small First Nation communities in the early to mid-twentieth century. These professionals were amongst the first working with First Nation people in their communities and at the crossroads of traditional and Western cultures. Individuals consuming traditional diets were in ‘superb health’. Early reports by physicians claimed, those consuming market food had poor health (Lipski 2010).

By the 1950s concern about the nutritional health of First Nation people living on stations prompted the Australian Commonwealth 1951 dietary survey. Smith and Smith (1999), illustrate that by the 1970s First Nation health was deteriorating further. So critical was First Nation health, that it gained attention from national and international critics. Until the 1970s, little information was recorded by the Health Department. Cases of malnutrition were frequent.

There was an absence or undersupply of vegetables, fruits and dairy, especially in remote communities. Smith and Smith (1999) illustrate that the foods most valued on station camps were meat, flour and sugar and were available as staples without any direct effort for their acquisition.

By the end of the 1800s the First Nation diet was dominated by station rations, including sugar, tea, flour, jam and meat. In the 1960s and 1970s alcohol was freely available and welfare payments were relied on as unemployment increased.

Kouris-Blazos and Wahlqvist (2000) report that westernisation of diet, loss of hunter gatherer skills and increasingly sedentary lifestyles have brought about susceptibility to so called lifestyle diseases.

Smith and Smith (1999) found after reviewing the Commonwealth Department of Health publications in 1951, including Australia’s first detailed nutrition survey and Gould’s work in 1980, that beef, flour, tea and sugar and only small amount of vegetables made up the diets of First Nation people.

First Nation people were relocated hundreds of kilometres from their homeland, rations were offered for work, as was shelter. By the 1980s traditional foods consisted of no more than 20% of total food intake.

McArthur et al (2000) illustrates the work of an anthropologist, nutritionist and plant ecologist observing the daily living activities of nomadic hunter gatherers of Arnhem Land, Northern Australia. The research methodology included eight months observing food gathering techniques of four families ‘living off’ traditional foods. Similar to the findings of Smith and Smith (1999) and Kouris-Blazos (2000), the hunter gatherer diet was varied, seasonal and there were periods of feast and famine.

If participants gorged one day, they rested the next. Men had defined roles in hunting, while women cared for the young and collected plant materials. First Nation people had unparalleled knowledge of their traditional foods. Preparation and cooking practices enhanced digestion, nutrient bioavailability and reduce levels of toxins (Lipski 2010). 4

Many foods were also used as medicines. Kouris-Blazoz & Wahlqvist (2000) noted that non-First Nation stockmen suffered from scurvy and ‘Barcoo rot’, while First Nation men, who ate traditional foods rarely suffered. Smith and Smith (1999) noted that hunter gatherer diets were high in vitamins and minerals. This was in direct contrast to station diets and rations, which contained little essential vitamins.

Brand-Miller & Holt (1998) presented evidence that traditional, plant-based materials have a nutrient composition that is protective against diseases like diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular diseases. Fruits, roots, tubers, nuts, seeds, leaves and flowers were analysed by three major scientific centres. Eight hundred traditional bush food samples had been collected over two decades.

The benefits of traditional foods were due to low total fat intakes and an almost vegetarian daily diet observed over five months. On closer examination the First Nation participants observed had a restricted diet, mainly due to drought and existed in a sparsely resourced and harsh environment. Gould described the physical environment as the most unreliable and impoverished in the world.

Grass seeds made up the bulk of the diet and by modern standards many of the First Nation people may have been malnourished. Traditional foods, especially meat such as dugong fat are essentially energy dense and there would be concerns if large quantities were consumed regularly

Traditional food diets correlated positively with higher intakes of iron, zinc, and potassium. Market food diets correlated positively with sodium, total fat, saturated fat, sugar and absolute energy intake. The authors concluded that poor nutritional status as a consequence of a deficient intake of traditional foods could be counteracted by education and access to good quality market foods.

It was also demonstrated that traditional foods are good sources of vitamin A, D and E

Jamieson et al (2012) in a cohort of 994 men found those without a household hunter had a higher risk of low or depleted iron stores. Traditional foods were the most important dietary source of Iron.

Altman (2007) illustrates the developmental problems in remote First Nation communities of Australia. Altman gives evidence to propose that First Nation economic and cultural development can be achieved, even in the most remote regions of Australia.

Is Australia Hiding Aboriginal Achievement, was this hiding so they didn’t have to justify was taken from the first people? Are Australians really of the view that our First People were incompetent, that the First People were’nt using the land, so there for it didn’t matter to the First People that it was taken away?

By the mid-nineteenth century smallpox had decimated the Aboriginal population and the last remaining people lost traditional hunting grounds and rights to water to the new settlers and their stock. In 1886 the Half-castes Act forced all Aboriginal people of mixed-ancestry to leave their traditional lands. Smith and Smith (1999) reviewing Commonwealth Department of Health documents from 1951, state Aboriginals were forced to adapt to extreme social change between 1890-1970. McCalman et al (2004) paints a horrifying picture that many Aboriginal people were now too ‘white’ to be ‘black’ and too ‘black’ to be allowed to be ‘white’. With Federation in 1901, The Commonwealth introduced entitlements in pensions and child payments, amongst others that systematically excluded Aboriginal people. The Aboriginal cohort, although incomplete, reveals how colonisation has dislocated community cohesion and social capital.

We have to relearn our history to gain the needed respect for Aboriginal expertise and therefore give Aboriginal people a much fairer place in Australian life.

There’s a lot lost but a lot to gain. Its much better now then it was for our parents.

We’ve hidden the real history from everyone, a lot of info is hidden in colonial records.

Very Economic, we never killed or harvest more then we needed, we were always doing many things at one. Look at the woomera, can be used for many things.

The ancient people of this land valued knowledge the same way the western way values materials.

We governed our country without warfare.

We had massive plantations of root vegetables and massive plantations of grains.

We may not have invented the laptop but we what we did invent was sustainable.

We spent a lot less time with food and shelter then new comers, we spent a lot of time burning and in ceremony.

Blackfullas know best how to look after country, we assured an abundance, even in drought, the old people can ensure abundance. We also know how to protect Biodiversity.

We got keep learning how to manage fire the way the old people did, you can’t outrun an Ash Wednesday. John Newton.

Challenges – society wants people to move into the white world, the risk is they move away from their own culture.

Colonialism is not a post its not over yet.

Everything they learnt in school is against culture, we are undefeated.

We never had rivers without water in them, we looked after the rivers

Murray Darling – took 90% of the water out of greed. They got no law, they talk about the Christian way. Man has dominion over the earth. We think the opposite ways. This system is perfect, it is us that has to change. Uncle Bruce Pascoe

Be proud of the genius of our ancestors, we have to live in the knowledge of law again.

The new historiography of Australia is needed– the new version of Australia’s history

Addiction and Trauma Is Not an Excuse It’s An Explanation

Indigenous Australians’ experience of child welfare policies has historically been traumatic, with the policy of forcible removal of children known as the Stolen Generations (National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from Their Families, 1997). The consequences of these removal policies have long-term impacts, including social, physical and psychological impacts for those directly involved, as well as their families and communities (Atkinson, 2013). Child protection issues continue to be very significant for Indigenous communities, reflecting this history of trauma and stressors that have impacted on parents, parenting skills and communities. Issues such as substance abuse, poverty and family violence are also key factors (AHRC, 2015; de Bortoli et al, 2015).

What works in one place wont work in othwrs we need community appropriate

When do gov ever only ever listen to one person in public policy? Only in aboriginal affairs

We haven’t got any vision in aboriginal affairs –

We have to get up and do things ourselves

Failed government policies cause transgenerational trauma – global studies have shown this to be true.

Trauma is natural but if they don’t have access to culture etc they will develop post traumatic stress disorder and will continue for generations unless its dealt with

The policies don’t reflet the fact that some medical people get it. Why are they drinking must be asked? Got to get to the bottom of the pain and get to who we really are.

Gotta get sober first to deal with the trauma and heal, get rid of all the old stuff. And we dicsover who we really are as black people.

Create services ourselves and don’t wait for govs to say sorry before we start our healing

Work on ourselves first.

There is help out there, money and funding is not the first step. If you want the healing you will find it, you have to stop thinking we have the answers. The ancestors are watching over us and have the answers, ask them for help. You cant do it alone.

Its no doubt peodophilia, drinking and drug use is an issue but the statistics show theres a bigger problem in the mainstream. Theres a higher proportion of drinking and drug use in the mainstream population statistically. It’s a well thought out campaign, there excuse is we are all users, drugs and crooks so they have to do everything for us. Its knee jerk reactions, lacking evidence based research and without consultation with the communities. The most well meaning people who cause the most oppression. They need a smoke screen to take our land, hence all the failed policies.

The message that started with Hindmarsh, we are all gammon and they are going to do everything for us.

The history of policies concerning Indigenous Australians is awash with unintended outcomes. Despite considerable investment from all levels of government, many indicators show that outcomes for Indigenous Australians are not improving and there is still a considerable way to go to achieve the Council of Australian Governments’ commitment to ‘close the gap’ in Indigenous disadvantage. As noted by Dockery (2010): From the arrival of the ‘First Fleet’ in Australia in 1788 … policy towards the Indigenous population has oscillated through a number of stages. It remains an issue of intense debate among Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians alike. The one point of consensus is that our past efforts have been a failure. (p. 315) The Australian Government recognises that Indigenous policy must: (1) work with Indigenous people in ways which take into account the full cultural, social, emotional and economic context of their lives; (2) actively involve Indigenous communities in every stage of program development and delivery; and (3) value Indigenous knowledge and cultural beliefs and practices which are important for promoting positive cultural identity and social and emotional wellbeing for Indigenous Australians (Osborne, Baum, & Brown, 2013). Moreover, the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (2006) declaration states: …Indigenous peoples will define their own understandings and visions of wellbeing from which indicators will be identified, and include the full participation of Indigenous peoples in the development of these indicators. (p.15) Despite such declarations, in many countries (including Australia) policy development and application remains deeply rooted in improving Indigenous wellbeing, as it is perceived by the dominant (Western) non-Indigenous culture. This position is most clearly articulated in the framework underpinning the ‘Closing the Gap’ suite of policies, where Indigenous outcomes are benchmarked against outcomes achieved by the non-Indigenous population (Australian Government, 2013). The use of a nonIndigenous perspective of wellbeing in the design and application of Indigenous policy is fundamentally flawed, as it does not account for Indigenous ways of life. What is needed is an appreciation of http://caepr.anu.edu.au/publications/routledge-wellbeing pg. 8 Indigenous wellbeing, as perceived by the Indigenous population itself. With a clearer understanding of Indigenous wellbeing and its determinants, more appropriate policy, and ultimately better outcomes, will be able to be achieved for this population. The introduction of subjective measures into the policy discourse will go some way to achieving this goal.http://caepr.anu.edu.au/sites/default/files/Publications/Sample-Chapter-Ambrey-Manning-and-Fleming.pdf

The DAA and the PHAA affirm:

Food security exists “when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to

sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active

and healthy life”.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states “everyone has the right to a standard of

living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food”. The right to adequate food is not a right to be fed but “a right of people to be given a fair

opportunity to feed themselves”, now and in the future

The Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission’s Social Justice Report 2005 proposes a rights based campaign to close the gap on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health inequalities within a generation. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples do not have an equal opportunity to be as healthy as non-Indigenous Australians. They do not enjoy equal access to primary health care and health infrastructure, which includes: safe drinking water, supplies of healthy food, effective sewerage systems, rubbish collection services and healthy housing. Without effectively addressing these underlying causes of health inequality, disease or condition-focussed programs are not likely to result in sustainable changes

In 2008, the Australian government officially supported the “Close the Gap” campaign.

In 1996, the World Health Organization declared that “food security is built on three pillars:

Food access: having sufficient resources to obtain appropriate foods for a nutritious diet

Food availability: sufficient quantities of food available on a consistent basis

Food use: appropriate use based on knowledge of basic nutrition and care, as well as

adequate water and sanitation”.

The DAA and the PHAA note that:

Australian Context

The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nutrition Strategy and Action Plan 2000-

2010 (NATSINSAP) recognised that poor diet is central to the poor health and disproportionate

burden of chronic disease experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The

NATSINSAP set a framework for action across all levels of government, in conjunction with

partners from industry and the non – government sector. Through the identification of seven

priority areas, the NATSINSAP has been designed to build on existing efforts to improve access

to nutritious and affordable food across urban, rural and remote communities. The

NATSINSAP recognises that improving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander nutrition is the

responsibility of all those involved with diet, health and the food and nutrition system across all

levels of government, non-government agencies and the private sector.

Seven priority areas, the NATSINSAP has been designed to build on existing efforts to improve access to nutritious and affordable food across urban, rural and remote communities.

Food supply in remote and rural communities

Food security and socioeconomic status

Family focused nutrition promotion

Nutrition issues in urban areas

The environment and household infrastructure

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nutrition Workforce

National food and nutrition information systems

Prior to European arrival in Australia, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples were healthy people who survived on a traditional diet rich in nutrients and low in energy density.

The dispossession of land and disruption to family structures through death, disease, forced resettlement and the removal of children since European arrival has severely affected the retention of knowledge, access to and use of traditional foods. Despite the devastating impact of colonisation and continued limitations around traditional food hunting/collection, traditional foods remain an important part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples lives today.

Traditional foods not only contribute to physical health but play a significant role towards cultural, spiritual and emotional health.

Altman (2007) illustrates the developmental problems in remote Aboriginal communities of Australia. Altman gives evidence to propose that Aboriginal economic and cultural development can be achieved, even in the most remote regions of Australia. Altman suggests that the geographically dispersed Aboriginal communities throughout Australia must become commercially, economically and culturally viable to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals. The absence of commercial opportunity has been dissolved by mainstreaming Aboriginal people that are unique and diverse. Altman states, that, there is a limited market opportunity, especially in remote and very remote regions and there is a reliance on welfare payouts and other poverty traps. Altman believes there are exceptional opportunities for Aboriginal people to create their own hybrid economies within their region and support their traditional cultures. Enterprises that can be explored can include art, craft and other artefact trade, hunting and fishing and land and wildlife management and customary land exploration, expeditions and wildlife and adventure treks. Climate changes are national concerns, as is water quality and management (Altman 2002). Aboriginal people can develop and assist in land and water management practices, improving food security through the protection and management of traditional foods. Aboriginal people are living on some of the most bio-diverse land in Australia and Aboriginal people themselves have the potential to create unique opportunities towards greater self-determination.